Hi, anyone have any tips on how NOT to get raided! I heard using a thing called a microlink or a vfo link!

I need some info on this please!

Thanks in advance!

Sat Jul 20, 2002 9:05 pm

StormiNormGuest

Do you really think you wont get raided if you use a link?..well it will provide you with a bit of insulation somewhat,the TX is usually the object of seizure,so if they cannot pinpoint your studio location,then you shall be spared the seizure of your studio equipment..which can cost twice as much or even more than what you may have invested in the Transmission end alone.However if you do get raided at the studio as well,which is not too difficult for the Relevant Law enforcement agency to pinpoint,then you can get cited twice.

Fri Jul 26, 2002 7:52 am

BABYCUBYNew registered user

Joined: 26 Jan 2004Posts: 6

IF YOU HAVE INTEL ON THE MICROLOINK PLEASE LET US KNOW I HEARD SOME GUYS WERE USING A 2.4GB WIRELESS ETHERNET CARD TO EVADE CAPUTURE OF THE EQUIPMENT.

Mon Jan 26, 2004 6:36 am

R_QRPRegular poster

Joined: 01 Oct 2003Posts: 30

Tips on how NOT to get raided!
Don´t transmitt at all!

73s de R_QRP

Mon Jan 26, 2004 8:46 am

BABYCUBYNew registered user

Joined: 26 Jan 2004Posts: 6

WOW, THANKS FOR BEING SO HELPFUL, WE ALL WOULD OF NEVER GUESSED THAT NOT TRANSMITTING IS THE BEST WAY OF NOT GETTING RAIDED. YOU ARE SUCH A HELP TO NEWBIES. THANKS SOOO MUCH

A tactic that seems to be more popular as the Internet become ubiquitous, is to rebroadcast a webcast.

Let's assume Radio Free Whiterash has a very successful web station running. Lots of volunteers, great programs, Democracy Now every three hours, etc. This is a legitimate venture. Nothing for the FCC here, move along.

Now let's assume somebody else wants to hear Radio Free Whiterash (RFW) in his car or at the park or while bicycling. So he puts up a transmitter hooked to his PC and carries RFW with 20 Watts on the FM band 24/7.

RFW is on the air, but they're not doing anything illegal.

This is pretty much what is happening here in my part of the world. We have a great webcaster, Free Radio Olympia, and somebody is also picking up their web stream and rebroadcasting it.

Yes, the FRO studio has been visited by the FCC. But they honestly told the feds that they don't know anything about any unlicensed transmitters. They're just doing a webcast. They have no way of stopping anybody who wants to put their webcast on the air.

Okay, they DO mention the on-air frequency, but they're NOT the ones doing the transmitting. Somebody else "completely unconnected with FRO" is picking up their freely available webcast and running it into a transmitter.

So far, this has kept them on the air. And for some reason, the FCC has not yet sent the stealth SUV down here to locate the transmitter site. Or if they have, they haven't told anybody. The FCC could know exactly where the transmitter site is, waiting for their paperwork to grind through the legal system so they can do the big bust. I don't have insider info here, so I can only sit back and watch. But sure as George Bush is a Nazi Sympathizer, FRO WILL get busted hard by the FCC one of these days. And it will be a sad day for the community.

Now, as for using a radio link from the studio to the transmitter, it will certainly make it tougher for the FCC to find the person responsible for the transmissions. They need some hard evidence of where the transmitter is located before they can get a search warrant.

If the transmitter is sitting quietly in a shed or closet where people aren't coming and going for air shifts, then it's much tougher for them. Unless the antenna is easily visible from a public place where the agents would have access. If you have a stealth antenna that's surrounded by other houses or offices or apartments, they may not be able to get enough solid evidence as to which place to search. And if the neighbors don't know about the transmitter when the FCC knocks on nearby doors, they might leave empty handed.

Of course, all high frequency radio links are very directional, so if the FCC gets their hands on your transmitter, they might very well follow the line of sight of your link receive antenna back to the originating studio, depending on how isolated your studio is. And they might even figure out what frequency you're using, then follow THAT back to you.

If I was a #%&! with the FCC (which I surely ain't) I would leave your transmitter on the air while I was tracking down your studio link, then surprise you at the studio end.

So my opinion is that you're still taking a risk, but you certainly making it much more work for authorities to find you.

But I point out that nothing is foolproof, and the FCC agents are generally pretty bright. (Maybe not as bright as ME, I like to think) But don't underestimate them. They do this a LOT and have gotten good at it.)

Be careful out there!

Dr. Sandi

Wed Oct 13, 2004 3:53 am

marekRegular poster

Joined: 31 May 2003Posts: 30Location: Arlöv

This is what I do.

First of all I have a webcast. This is received approx 50 m from a cable headend nearby and then broadcasted to a small 300 mW transmitter that is just enough to feed the signal to the cable network. Then in the other end of this little city I have a tuner and a 10W transmitter standing rebroadcasting all of it. It has worked for 2-3 years now. The problem however is that I almost daily have to go and reset the connection as it often goes down. That's of course the risk factor, but I have measured the signal just in order for it not to reach the studios of the largest two commercial stations here, the state radio or the broadcasting authority and of course - I use gloves when doing anything with the tx.
I'm thinking about replacing the feed to the cable network (and another one network) with a SW tx and broadcast in DRM. That way I wouldn't risk having to visit the first transmitter so often.

Sun Aug 20, 2006 6:30 pm

Pigmeat02New registered user

Joined: 22 Oct 2006Posts: 14

Run a clean signal. Causing interference will generally get you busted quicker than anything else.

Vary your broadcasting schedule and transmit from multiple sites. It's tough to df a station that is mobile and flexible.
If you tx at the same time for "x" amount ot time from the same place,and the authorities are interested in you,you're eventually going to get busted?

BTW,no one outside of your operating crew should know who you are and where you live.

Another thing,and I say this because I've seen people do it time and time again,never use your personal phone number,land-line or mobile,for station contact on the air. You might as well be saying "Here I am!"

Remember,if you do anything illicit or illegal long enough you're going to get popped? It's part of the game. You've got to accept that going in.